"He's a great guy," said Russell, adding that he sometimes uses Izzo's coaching style as an example of effective leadership. "He gives immediate feedback."

As CEO of Consumers Energy's parent company, the Jackson-based CMS Energy, Russell oversees a workforce of 7,700 employees. The power company serves 1.8 million electric customers and 1.7 million natural gas customers.

Speaking to a crowd of mostly college students, Russell emphasized the value of electricity.

People spend $1,400 a year for their cell phone but only $1 a year to charge the devices.

"The two worst things about a cellphone is when you don't have service and when you are out of power," Russell said. "You will do anything and plug in anywhere to get your cellphone to operate, which even means you are probably taking electricity from somebody else. If your phone dies, you will look for the first outlet and not ask and not think about it."

You can get a way with plugging into your friend's or a stranger's outlet because it's so cheap, he said.

"It just shows you the value of electricity," said Russell. "What we do every day is make sure we enable your world."

Electricity is one of the most volatile resources because it moves at the speed of light and can't be stored.

CMS's five-year plan to invest $6.6 billion in the state to improve the state's energy supply will make the company the second largest investor in Michigan.

Not surprisingly, Russell's comments included a recommendation to vote against Proposal 3, an amendment to the state constitution that would require 25 percent of the state's energy come from renewable sources by 2025.

"Wind can be price-competitive, but it only runs 30 percent of the time when the wind blows," said Russell. "So you have to build a lot more of (windmills) or you have to build a plant to back it up so it get really expensive when you do it. Publicly, I say it's a reckless proposal."